CRIMINAL LAW 1- AN OVERVIEW

WITH EXPANSIONS

3rd EXPANSION

CRIMES DEFINED AND PENALIZED BY SPECIAL LAWS

Art. 10. Offenses not subject to the provisions of this Code. — Offenses which are or in the future may
be punishable under special laws are not subject to the provisions of this Code. This Code shall be
supplementary to such laws, unless the latter should specially provide the contrary.

 There are 3 classes of crimes. The RPC defines and penalizes the first two classes: 1)
intentional and 2) culpable felonies.
 The third class of crimes is those defined and penalized by special laws which include crimes
punished by municipal or city ordinances.

The provisions of this Code are not applicable to offenses punished by special laws especially those
relating to the requisite of criminal intent; the stages of commission; and the application of penalties.
However, when the special law is silent, the Code can give suppletory effect.

Dolo is not required in crimes punished by special laws because these crimes are mala prohibita.
In those crimes punished by special laws, the act alone irrespective of its motives, constitutes the
offense.
Good faith and absence of criminal intent are not valid defenses in crimes punished by special laws

MALA IN SE and MALA PROHIBITA

Mala in se - an act, by its very nature, is inherently and morally wrong; it should be done with criminal
intent
Malum prohibitum – an act is wrong only because there is a law punishing it. It is enough that the
prohibited act was voluntarily committed and need not be committed with malice or criminal intent
to be punishable.

2ND EXPANSION:

BASIC PRINCIPLES

Criminal law has three main characteristics:

1) general, 2) territorial, and 3) prospective.

1. GENERALITY of Criminal Law

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¤ Civil Code, Article 14
Penal laws and those of public security and safety shall be obligatory upon all those who live or
sojourn in the Philippine territory, subject to the principles of public international law and to treaty
stipulations.

¤ 1987 Constitution, Article VI, Section 11

A Senator or Member of the House of Representatives shall, in all offenses punishable by not more
than six years imprisonment, be privileged from arrest while the Congress is in session. No Member
shall be questioned nor be held liable in any other place for any speech or debate in the Congress or
in any committee thereof.

General Rule: The jurisdiction of the civil courts is not affected by the military character of the
accused.

 Civil courts have concurrent jurisdiction with general court-martial over soldiers of the Armed
Forces of the Philippines even in times of war, provided that in the place of the commission of the
crime no hostilities are in progress and civil courts are functioning.

 When the military court takes cognizance of the case involving a person subject to military law, the
Articles of War apply, not the RPC or other penal laws.

 The prosecution of an accused before a court-martial is a bar to another prosecution of the

accused for the same offense.

 Offenders accused of war crimes are triable by military commission. A military commission has
jurisdiction even if actual hostilities have ceased as long as a technical state of war continues.

Exceptions to the general application of criminal law

Art. 2, RPC, “Except as provided in the treatise or laws of preferential application…”

Art. 14, Civil Code, “…subject to the principles of public international law and to treaty stipulations.”

 An example of a treaty or treat stipulation is the Bases Agreement entered into by the Philippines
and the US on Mar. 14, 1947 and expired on Sept. 16, 1991.

 Another example would be the VFA signed on Feb. 10, 1998 where the Philippines agreed that:
a. US military authorities shall have the right to exercise within the Philippines all criminal and
disciplinary jurisdiction conferred on them by the military law of the US over US personnel in RP;
b. US authorities exercise exclusive jurisdiction over US personnel with respect to offenses, including
offenses relating to the security of the US punishable under the law of the US, but not under the laws
of RP;
c. US military authorities shall have the primary right to exercise jurisdiction over US personnel
subject to the military law of the US in relation to: (1) offenses solely against the property or security
of the US or offenses solely against the property or person of US personnel; and (2) offenses arising
out of any act or omission done in performance of official duty.

 An example of a law of preferential application would be R.A. No. 75 which penalizes acts which
would impair the proper observance by the Republic and inhabitants of the Philippines of the

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immunities, rights, and privileges of duly accredited foreign diplomatic representatives in the
Philippines.

 Persons exempt from the operation of our criminal laws by virtue of the principles of public
international law
(1) Sovereigns and other chiefs of state.
(2) Ambassadors, ministers, plenipotentiary, ministers resident, and charges d’affaires.

* a consul is not entitled to the privileges and immunities of an ambassador or minister.

* under the Constitution, members of Congress are not liable for libel or slander in connection with
any speech delivered on the floor of an house during regular or special session.

2. TERRITORIALITY of Criminal Law

¤ 1987 Constitution, Article I

The national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced
therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting
of its terrestrial, fluvial, and aerial domain including the territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the
insular shelves, and other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting the islands
of the archipelago regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form part of the internal waters of the
Philippines.

Art. 2. The provisions of the RPC are enforceable on all crimes committed within the limits of
Philippine territory but it may also apply outside of the Philippine jurisdiction against who:
1. should commit an offense while on a Philippine ship or airship;
2. should forge or counterfeit an coin or currency note of the Philippines or obligations and
securities issued by the Philippine government;
3. should be liable for acts connected with the introduction into the country of the obligations and
securities aforestated;
4. while being public officers or employees, should commit an offense in the exercise of their
functions; and
5. should commit any of the crimes against national security and the law of nations defined in
Title I, Book II of the Code.

Explanation of the exceptions

1. The Philippine ship or airship must be duly registered under the Philippine laws with the Philippine
Bureau of Customs. Such vessel when beyond the 3- mile limit is considered and extension of
Philippine national territory. BUT if said Philippine vessel or aircraft is within the territory of a foreign
country when the crime is committed, the laws of that country will apply as a rule.
The Philippine court has no jurisdiction over the crime of theft committed on the high seas on board a
vessel not registered or licensed in the Philippines.
2. Any person who makes false or counterfeit coins or forges treasury or bank notes or other
obligations and securities in a foreign country may be prosecuted before our civil courts for violation
of Art.
163 or Art. 166 of the RPC.
3. The reason for the exceptions in paragraph (b) and (c) is to maintain and preserve the financial

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credit and stability of the state.
4. The offense committed by a public officer abroad, like a consular official, must refer to the
discharge of his functions i.e. bribery, malversation or falsification.
5. The reason for the exception regarding crimes against national security and the law of nations is to
safeguard the existence of the state. Piracy is triable anywhere. Piracy and mutiny are crimes against
the law of nations while treason and espionage are crimes against national security.

 The RPC has therefore territorial and extraterritorial application. The maritime zone extends to
three miles from the outermost coastline. Beyond that is the “high seas” which is outside the
territorial waters of the Philippines.

 There are two rules as to jurisdiction over crimes committed aboard merchant vessels while in the
territorial waters of another country.

French rule – Such crimes are not triable in the courts of that country unless their commission affects
the peace and security of the territory or the safety of the state is endangered.
English rule – Such crimes are triable in that country unless they merely affect things within the
vessel or they refer to the internal management thereof.
We observe the English Rule.

 Disorders which disturb only the peace of the ship or those on board are to be dealt with exclusively
by the sovereignty of the home of the ship, but those which disturb the public peace may be
suppressed, and, if need be, the offenders punished by the proper authorities of the local
jurisdiction.

 Smoking opium aboard a foreign vessel in Philippine waters constitutes a breach of public order
because it causes such drug to produce its pernicious effects within our territory.

 Philippine courts have no jurisdiction over offenses committed on board foreign warships in
territorial waters. Warships are always reputed to be the territory of the country to which they belong
and cannot be subjected to the laws of another state.

3. PROSPECTIVITY of Criminal Law (and rule of Lenity)

¤ RPC, Art.21. Penalties that may be imposed.-

No felony shall be punishable by any penalty not prescribed by law prior to its commission.

¤ RPC, Art. 22. Retroactive effect of penal laws. –

Penal laws shall have a retroactive effect in so far as they favor the person guilty of a felony, who is
not a habitual criminal, as this term is defined in Rule 5 of Article 62 of this Code, although at the time
of the publication of such laws a final sentence has been pronounced and the convict is serving the
same.

¤ Civil Code, Art. 4

Laws shall have no retroactive effect, unless the contrary is provided.

General Rule: Ex post facto law is prohibited. Ex post facto law is one that is specifically made to

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retroact to cover acts before it became effective to the prejudice of the accused; or to make a certain
crime graver or prescribe a heavier penalty for it.

 The law does not have any retroactive effect EXCEPT if it favors the offender unless he is a
habitual delinquent or the law otherwise provides.

 This is consistent with the general principle that criminal laws, being a limitation on the rights of
the people, should be construed strictly against the State and liberally in favor of the accused.

Different effects of repeal of penal law.

1. If the repeal makes the penalty lighter in the new law, the new law shall be applied, except when
the offender is a habitual delinquent or when the new law is made not applicable to pending action or
existing causes of action.
2. If the new law imposes a heavier penalty, the law in force at the time of the commission of the
offense shall be applied.
3. If the new law totally repeals the existing law so that the act which was penalized under the old
law is no longer punishable, the crime is obliterated.

 When the repeal is absolute the offense ceases to be criminal.

 When the new law and the old law penalize the same offense, the offender can be tried under the
old law.
 When the repealing law fails to penalize the offense under the old law, the accused cannot be
convicted under the new law.
 A person erroneously accused and convicted under a repealed statute may be punished under the
repealing statute.

4. Nullum Crimen Nulla Poena Sine Lege

Art. 3. Definitions. — Acts and omissions punishable by law are felonies (delitos).

Art. 21. Penalties that may be imposed. — No felony shall be punishable by any penalty not
prescribed by law prior to its commission.

There is no crime when where is no law punishing it.

5. STRICT CONSTRUCTION of penal laws against the State (in dubio pro reo)

¤ 1987 Constitution, Article III, Sec. 14(2)

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved….

Rules of Construction of Penal Laws

1. Criminal statutes are liberally construed in favor of the offender. This means that no person
shall be brought within their terms of the law who is not clearly within them, nor should any act be
pronounced criminal which is not clearly made so by statute.
2. The original text in which a penal law is approved will govern in case of a conflict with an
official translation. Hence, the RPC, which was approved in Spanish text, is controlling over its English
translation.

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3. Interpretation by analogy has no place in criminal matters.
- reasoning by analogy is applied only when similarities are limited and it is admitted that significant
differences also exist.

CRIMINAL LAW- Nullum crimen nulla poena sine Clarification/misconception:

1. Defines crimes lege (there is no crime when
 there is no law punishing it) Mala in se
2.Treats of their nature Mala prohibita
3. Provides punishment
therefore Who? Congress Better standard- vileness or
inherent immorality
Where?
1. Revised Penal Code  3rd EXPANSION

2. Special Penal Laws
(Article 10- Offenses not subject
to the provisions of this Code)

 1st EXPANSION

How (in application)? Article 1

and 2

1. General-
Exception: treaties and laws of
preferential application

2. Territorial-
Exception: extraterritoriality
principle and protective
principle

3. Prospective-
Exception: retroactivity and rule
of lenity (in dubio pro reo)

 2nd EXPANSION

So what?

Article 5- Duty of the Court

- In connection with acts
which should be
repressed but which are
not covered by law
- In case of excessive
penalties

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 1st EXPANSION:

1. SOURCES OF PHILIPPINE CRIMINAL LAW (REYES)

1. The Revised Penal Code (Act No. 3815) and its amendments
2. Special penal laws passed by the Philippine Commission, Philippine Assembly, Philippine
Legislature, National Assembly, the Congress of the Philippines, and the Batasang Pambansa.
3. Penal Presidential Decrees issued during Martial Law.

¤ 1987 Constitution Article II, Section 5

Declaration of Principles and State Policies. The maintenance of peace and order, the protection of
life, liberty and property, and the promotion of the general welfare are essential for the enjoyment by
all the people of the blessings of democracy.

¤ 1987 Constitution Article VI, Section 1

The legislative power shall be vested in the Congress of the Philippines which shall consist of a Senate
and a House of Representatives, except to the extent reserved to the people by the provision on
initiative and referendum.

2. LIMITATIONS TO STATE AUTHORITY TO PUNISH CRIMES

1987 Constitution, Art. III

Sec. 1. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor shall
any person be denied the equal protection of the laws.
Sec. 14. No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process of law.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved, and
shall enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause of
the accusation against him, to have a speedy, impartial and public trial, to meet the witnesses face to
face, and to gave compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses and the production of
evidence in his behalf. However, after arraignment, trial may proceed notwithstanding the absence of
the accused provided that he has been duly notified and his failure to appear is unjustifiable.
Sec. 18. No person shall be detained solely by reason of his political beliefs and aspirations.
No involuntary servitude in any form shall exist except as a punishment for a crime whereof the party
shall have been duly convicted.
Sec. 19. Excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor cruel degrading or inhuman punishment inflicted.
Neither shall death penalty be imposed, unless, for compelling reasons involving heinous crimes, the
Congress hereafter provides for it. Any death penalty already imposed shall be reduced to reclusion
perpetua.
The employment of physical, psychological, or degrading punishment against any prisoner or detainee
or the use of substandard or inadequate penal facilities under subhuman conditions shall be dealt
with by law.
Sec. 20. No person shall be imprisoned for debt or non-payment of a poll tax.
Sec. 22. No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted.

1985 Rules on Criminal Procedure, Rule 115

Section 1. Rights of accused at trial. – In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be entitled to the
following rights:

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(a) To be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved beyond reasonable doubt.
(b) To be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him.
(c) To be present and defend in person and by counsel at every stage of the proceedings, from
arraignment to promulgation of the judgment. The accused may, however, waive his presence at the
trial pursuant to the stipulations set forth in his bail, unless his presence is specifically ordered by the
court for purposes of identification. The absence of the accused without justifiable cause at the trial
of which he had notice shall be considered a waiver of his right to be present thereat. When an
accused under custody escapes, he shall be deemed to have waived his right to be present on all
subsequent trial dates until custody over him is regained. Upon motion, the accused may be allowed
to defend himself in person when it sufficiently appears to the court that he can properly protect his
rights without the assistance of counsel.
(d) To testify as a witness in his own behalf but subject to cross-examination on matters covered by
direct examination. His silence shall not in any manner prejudice him.
(e) To be exempt from being compelled to be a witness against himself.
(f) To confront and cross-examine the witnesses against him at the trial. Either party may utilize as
part of its evidence the testimony of a witness who is deceased, out of or can not with due diligence
be found in the Philippines, unavailable, or otherwise unable to testify, given in another case or
proceeding, judicial or administrative, involving the same parties and subject matter, the adverse
party having the opportunity to cross-examine him.
(g) To have compulsory process issued to secure the attendance of witnesses and production of other
evidence in his behalf.
(h) To have speedy, impartial and public trial. (i) To appeal in all cases allowed and in the
manner prescribed by law.

Civil Code, Article 2

Penal laws and those of public security and safety shall be obligatory upon all who live or sojourn in
the Philippine territory, subject to the principles of public international law and to treaty stipulations.

PENOLOGICAL OBJECTIVES
a. Prevention – This assumes that man has a tendency to commit crime and punishing offenders will
prevent them from doing so again. Suppression can only be made possible through penal
jurisprudence.
b. Deterrence/Exemplarity – This assumes that man is endowed with free will and of his awareness of
the sanctions against crimes and his fear of such. Especially if there is:
1. Certainty
- that all crimes will be punished.
2. Celerity
– that punishment will come swiftly
3. Severity
– that punishment is proportionate to his crime.
It is also assumed that punishing the offender with cruel and conspicuous penalties will make an
example of him to deter others from doing the same in the future.
c. Self-Defense – This is probably a conclusion reached by the social contract theorists who hold
that there is an unwritten contract between men and their society where individuals agree to give up
certain rights in exchange for the protection and benefits offered by a community. If individuals
violate this contract, then the society, through the State, has the right to enforce its laws and protect
its own existence.

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d. Reformation – This assumes that punishment is capable of changing/rehabilitating individuals.
e. Retribution – This rests on the basic premise that justice must be done: the offender shall not go
unpunished. This belongs to that which maintains that punishment is inherent in the very nature of a
crime and is thus its necessary consequence.

…1. Defines Crimes 1. Offenses- Special Penal Laws

 2. Felonies (Article 3)- Revised
Penal Code

 4th EXPANSION

a. Acts and omissions

b. punishable by law
c. committed by means of dolo
(deceit) and culpa (fault)
Deceit (dolo) Culpa (fault)
Malice Imprudence- lack of foresight
Negligence- lack of skill
Note the distinctions:
1. Motive
2. Specific intent
3. General intent
Elements:
1. Voluntariness
2. Freedom
3. Intelligence
actus non facit reum nisi mens rea
Such that, still liable even if Not liable if (distinguish from):
(Article 4)-:
Mistake of fact-
1. Wrongful act be different 1. act would have been lawful
from that intended 2. lawful intention in
a. praeter intentionem performing (no dolo)
b. aberratio ictus 3. mistake w/o fault or
c. error in personae negligence (no culpa)
Liable if (distinguish from):
El que es causa de la causa es
causa del mal causado Ignorance of the law
(proximate cause vs efficient Ignorantia juris non excusat
intervening cause)

2. Impossible Crime
a. inherently impossible
b. employment of inadequate
or ineffectual means

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  5th EXPANSION

4th EXPANSION:

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Art. 1. Time when Act takes effect. This code shall take effect on the first day of January, nineteen
hundred and thirty.

 The RPC consists of two books: Book One consists of

1) basic principles affecting criminal liability and 2) the provisions on penalties including criminal and
civil liability; Book Two defines felonies with the corresponding penalties.

Two theories in criminal law

a. CLASSICAL
b. POSITIVIST

The RPC is based mainly on principles of old or classical school.

Characteristics of the classical theory
1. The basis of criminal liability is human free will and the purpose of the penalty is retribution.
2. That man is essentially a moral creature with an absolutely free will to choose between good and
evil thereby placing more stress upon the effect or result of the felonious act than upon the man, the
criminal himself.
3. It has endeavored to establish a mechanical and direct proportion between crime and penalty.
4. There is a scant regard to the human element.

Characteristics of the positivist theory

1. That man is subdued occasionally by a strange and morbid phenomenon which constrains him to
do wrong, inspite of or contrary to his volition.
2. That crime is essentially a social and natural phenomenon, and as such, it cannot be treated
and checked by the application of abstract principles of law and jurisprudence nor by the imposition
of a punishment which is fixed and determined a priori; but rather through the enforcement of
individual measures in each particular case after a thorough, personal and individual investigation
conducted by a competent body of psychiatrists and social scientists.

II. FELONIES

Art. 3. Definitions. — Acts and omissions punishable by law are felonies (delitos).
Felonies are committed not only be means of deceit (dolo) but also by means of fault (culpa).
There is deceit when the act is performed with deliberate intent and there is fault when the wrongful
act results from imprudence, negligence, lack of foresight, or lack of skill.

Felonies are acts and omissions punishable by the

Revised Penal Code.

Elements of Felonies
1. There must be an act or omission

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2. That the act or omission must be punishable by the RPC
3. That the act is performed or the omission incurred by means of dolo or culpa.

Definition of terms
ACT – must be overt or external (mere criminal thought or intent is not punishable)
OMISSION – failure to perform a duty required by law ex. Failure to render assistance, failure to
issue receipt, non-disclosure of knowledge of conspiracy against the government.

A. HOW COMMITTED

Classification of felonies according to the means by which they are committed (IN GENERAL ONLY)

1. INTENTIONAL / DOLO
(by means of deceit, malice)

- the offender in performing the act or incurring the omission, has the intention to cause an injury to
another
- the word “deceit” in par. 2 of Art. 3 is not the proper translation of the word “dolo”. Dolus is actually
equivalent to malice which is the intent to do an injury to another.

2. CULPABLE
(by means of fault or culpa)

- an act performed without malice but at the same time punishable though in a lesser degree and
with an equal result

imprudence - lack of precaution to avoid injury, usually involves lack of skill

negligence - failure to foresee impending danger, usually involves lack of foresight

1. DOLO

INTENT V. MOTIVE

MOTIVE is the moving power which impels one to action for a define result.
INTENT is the purpose to use a particular means to effect such result.

Motive is not an essential element of a crime, and, hence need not be proved for purposes of
conviction.
Motive is essential only when there is doubt as to the identity of the assailant. It is immaterial when
the accused has been positively identified.
Proof of motive alone is not sufficient to support a conviction but lack of motive may be an aid in
showing the innocence of the accused.
There is no felony by dolo if there is no intent

REQUISITES OF DOLO OR MALICE

1. freedom – that the act or omission was voluntary and without external compulsion.
2. intelligence – knowledge needed to determine the morality and consequences of an act. The

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imbecile, insane and minors have no criminal liability.
Actus me invito factus non est meus actus
“the act done by me against my will is not my act”
3. intent – intent to commit the act with malice, being purely a mental process, is presumed and
the presumption arises from the proof of the commission of the unlawful act.

Intent presupposes the exercise of freedom and the use of intelligence

The existence of intent is shown by the overt acts of a person
Criminal intent is presumed from the commission of an unlawful act BUT the presumption of
criminal intent does not arise from the proof of the commission of an act which is not unlawful.

Actus non facit reum, nisi mens sit rea

“the act itself does not make a man guilty unless his intention were so”
A crime is not committed if the mind of the person performing to act complained be innocent.
It must be borne in mind that the act from which the presumption of existence of criminal intent
springs must be a criminal act.

MISTAKE OF FACT
It is a misapprehension of fact on the part of the person who caused injury to another. He is not,
however, criminally liable, because he did not act with criminal intent.
Requisites:
1. That the act done would have been lawful had the facts been as the accused believed them
to be.
2. That the intention of the accused in performing the act should be lawful
3. That the mistake must be without fault or carelessness on the part of the accused.

2. CULPA
Criminal intent is replaced by negligence and imprudence in felonies committed by means of
culpa.

RPC, Art. 365 par 7

Reckless imprudence consists in voluntarily, but without malice, doing or failing to do an act from
which material damage results by reason of inexcusable lack of precaution on the part of the person
performing or failing to perform such act, taking into consideration his employment or occupation,
degree of intelligence physical condition and other circumstances regarding persons, time and place.
Simple imprudence consists in the lack of precaution displayed in those cases in which the damage
impending to be cause is not immediate nor the danger clearly manifest.

Requisites of culpa:
1. freedom
2. intelligence
3. imprudence, negligence or lack of foresight and skill in culpable felonies, the
injury caused to another should be unintentional, it being simply the incident of another act
performed without malice.

5th EXPANSION

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PUNISHABLE CONDUCT

Art. 4. Criminal liability. — Criminal liability shall be incurred:

1. By any person committing a felony (delito) although the wrongful act done be different from that
which he intended.
2. By any person performing an act which would be an offense against persons or property, were
it not for the inherent impossibility of its accomplishment or an account of the employment of
inadequate or ineffectual means.

1. WRONGFUL ACT DIFFERENT FROM THAT INTENDED

One who commits an intentional felony is responsible for all the consequences which may naturally
and logically result therefrom, whether foreseen or intended or not.
Rationale: el que es causa de la causa es causa del mal causado
“He who is the cause of the cause is the cause of the evil caused”
When a person has not committed a felony, he is not criminally liable for the result which is not
intended.

The causes which may produce a result different from that which the offender intended are:
a. ERROR IN PERSONAE – mistake in the identity of the victim; injuring one person mistaken for
another (this is a complex crime under Art. 49)
b. ABERRATIO ICTUS – mistake in the blow, that is, when the offender intending to do an injury to
one person actually inflicts it on another; and
c. PRAETER INTENTIONEM – the act exceeds the intent, that is, the injurious result is greater than
that intended.
The felony committed must be the proximate cause of the resulting injury.

PROXIMATE CAUSE – the cause, which, in natural and continuous sequence, unbroken by any efficient
intervening cause, produces the injury, and without which the result would not have occurred.

Example:
When death is presumed to be the natural consequence of physical injuries inflicted:
1. That the victim at the time the physical injuries were inflicted was in normal health.
2. That the death may be expected from the physical injuries inflicted.
3. That death ensued within a reasonable time.
The felony committed is not the proximate cause of the resulting injury when:
a. There is an active force that intervened between the felony committed and the resulting injury, and
the active force is a distinct act or fact absolutely foreign from the felonious act of the accused; or
b. The resulting injury is due to the intentional act of the victim.

2. OMISSION

Art. 116. Misprision of treason. — Every person owing allegiance to (the United States) the
Government of the Philippine Islands, without being a foreigner, and having knowledge of any
conspiracy against them, conceals or does not disclose and make known the same, as soon as

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possible to the governor or fiscal of the province, or the mayor or fiscal of the city in which he resides,
as the case may be, shall be punished as an accessory to the crime of treason.

Art. 137. Disloyalty of public officers or employees. — The penalty of prision correccional in its
minimum period shall be imposed upon public officers or employees who have failed to resist a
rebellion by all the means in their power, or shall continue to discharge the duties of their offices
under the control of the rebels or shall accept appointment to office under them.

Art. 208. Prosecution of offenses; negligence and tolerance. — The penalty of prision correccional in
its minimum period and suspension shall be imposed upon any public officer, or officer of the law,
who, in dereliction of the duties of his office, shall maliciously refrain from instituting prosecution for
the punishment of violators of the law, or shall tolerate the commission of offenses.

Art. 223. Conniving with or consenting to evasion.

— Any public officer who shall consent to the escape of a prisoner in his custody or charge, shall be
punished:
1. By prision correccional in its medium and maximum periods and temporary special disqualification
in its maximum period to perpetual special disqualification, if the fugitive shall have been sentenced
by final judgment to any penalty.
2. By prision correccional in its minimum period and temporary special disqualification, in case the
fugitive shall not have been finally convicted but only held as a detention prisoner for any crime or
violation of law or municipal ordinance.

Art. 234. Refusal to discharge elective office. — The penalty of arresto mayor or a fine not exceeding
1,000 pesos, or both, shall be imposed upon any person who, having been elected by popular election
to a public office, shall refuse without legal motive to be sworn in or to discharge the duties of said
office.

Art. 275. Abandonment of person in danger and abandonment of one’s own victim. — The penalty of
arresto mayor shall be imposed upon:
1. Any one who shall fail to render assistance to any person whom he shall find in an uninhabited
place wounded or in danger of dying, when he can render such assistance without detriment to
himself, unless such omission shall constitute a more serious offense.
2. Anyone who shall fail to help or render assistance to another whom he has accidentally
wounded or injured.
3. Anyone who, having found an abandoned child under seven years of age, shall fail to deliver said
child to the authorities or to his family, or shall fail to take him to a safe place.

Treble Concept of Penalties

Circumstances Affecting
Criminal Liability/ Modifying Stages of Execution Criminal Participation
Circumstances (Article 6 to 9): (Article 16 to 20):
(Article 11 to 15) :
A. Attempted A. Principal
A. Justifying B. Frustrated B. Accomplice

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 B. Exempting C. Consummated C. Accessory
C. Mitigating
D. Aggravating
E. Alternative

General Rule: Period General Rule: Degree

Stages of Execution
6th EXPANSION

PROPOSAL AND CONSPIRACY

Art. 8. Conspiracy and proposal to commit felony.

— Conspiracy and proposal to commit felony are punishable only in the cases in which the law
specially provides a penalty therefore.
A conspiracy exists when two or more persons come to an agreement concerning the commission of a
felony and decide to commit it.
There is proposal when the person who has decided to commit a felony proposes its execution to
some other person or persons.

GENERAL RULE: Conspiracy and proposal to commit a felony are not punishable
EXCEPTION: They are punishable only in the cases in which the law specially provides a penalty
therefore. RATIONALE: Conspiracy and proposal to commit a crime are only preparatory acts and
the law regards them as innocent or at least permissible except in rare and exceptional cases.

Conspiracy and proposal to commit a felony are two different acts or felonies: (1) conspiracy to
commit a felony, and (2) proposal to commit a felony.

INDICATIONS OF CONSPIRACY
- for a collective responsibility among the accused to be established, it is sufficient that at the time of
the aggression, all of them acted in concert, each doing his part to fulfill their common design to
commit the felony.

REQUISITES OF CONSPIRACY
a. That two or more persons came to an agreement:
- agreement presupposes meeting of the minds of two or more persons
b. That the agreement concerned the commission of a felony; and
- the agreement must refer to the commission of a crime. It must be an agreement to act, to effect, to
bring about what has already been conceived and determined
c. That the execution of the felony be decided upon.
- the conspirators have made up their minds to commit the crime. There must be a
determination to commit the crime of treason, rebellion or sedition.

PROPOSAL Requisites:
a. That a person has decided to commit a felony; and
b. That he proposes its execution to some other person or persons.
It is not necessary that the person to whom the proposal is made agrees to commit treason or

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rebellion.

There is no criminal proposal when:

a. The person who proposes is not determined to commit the felony.
b. There is no decided, concrete and formal proposal.
c. It is not the execution of a felony that is proposed.

Examples:

Art. 115. Conspiracy and proposal to commit treason; Penalty. — The conspiracy or proposal to
commit the crime of treason shall be punished respectively, by prision mayor and a fine not exceeding
P10,000 pesos, and prision correccional and a fine not exceeding P5,000 pesos.

Art. 136. Conspiracy and proposal to commit coup d’etat, rebellion or insurrection. — The conspiracy
and proposal to commit coup d’etat shall be punished by prision mayor in minimum period and a fine
which shall not exceed eight thousand pesos (P8,000.00).

Art. 141. Conspiracy to commit sedition. — Persons conspiring to commit the crime of sedition shall
be punished by prision correccional in its medium period and a fine not exceeding 2,000 pesos

Art. 186. Monopolies and combinations in restraint of trade. — The penalty of prision correccional in
its minimum period or a fine ranging from 200 to 6,000 pesos, or both, shall be imposed upon:
1. Any person who shall enter into any contract or agreement or shall take part in any conspiracy or
combination in the form of a trust or otherwise, in restraint of trade or commerce or to prevent by
artificial means free competition in the market;

Art. 306. Who are brigands; Penalty. — When more than three armed persons form a band of robbers
for the purpose of committing robbery in the highway, or kidnapping persons for the purpose of
extortion or to obtain ransom or for any other purpose to be attained by means of force and violence,
they shall be deemed highway robbers or brigands.
Persons found guilty of this offense shall be punished by prision mayor in its medium period to
reclusion temporal in its minimum period if the act or acts committed by them are not punishable by
higher penalties, in which case, they shall suffer such high penalties.
If any of the arms carried by any of said persons be an unlicensed firearm, it shall be presumed that
said persons are highway robbers or brigands, and in case of convictions the penalty shall be imposed
in the maximum period.

Art. 340. Corruption of minors. — Any person who shall promote or facilitate the prostitution or
corruption of persons underage to satisfy the lust of another, shall be punished by prision mayor, and
if the culprit is a pubic officer or employee, including those in government-owned or controlled
corporations, he shall also suffer the penalty of temporary absolute disqualification.

- The RPC specially provides a penalty for mere conspiracy in treason, coup d’etat, rebellion or
sedition. Treason, coup d’etat, rebellion or sedition must not actually be committed or else conspiracy
shall no longer be punishable because it is not a separate offense from the felony itself.

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Stages of Development of a Crime:

1. Internal Acts- mere ideas (vs intention and

effect must concur)
Conspiracy and Proposal (Article 8)
2. External Acts-
a. Preparatory Acts  Proposal: decide and propose
b. Acts of Execution Conspiracy: agree and decide

Cf: Act of one is the act of all/ Collective

responsibility rule (manner of incurring criminal
 (Article 6) liability)

 6th EXPANSION

Indeterminate Offense

Consummated Frustrated Attempted

1. Perform all acts of execution 1. Perform all acts of execution 1. Commences the commission
directly by over act directly by over act of the felony by overt acts
2. Produce felony as 2. Would produce felony as 2. Does not perform all the acts
consequence consequence of execution which would
3. But felony is not produced produce the felony
4. By reason of causes 3. Act not stopped by his own
independent of the will of the spontaneous desistance
perpetrator 4. But due to cause or accident
Objective Phase Subjective Phase
Formal crime vs. Material Crimes
(Article 7) Light felonies are punishable only when they have been consummated, with the exception
of those committed against person or property

(Article 9) Classification of felonies according to gravity:

1. Grave felonies- those to which the law attaches the capital punishment or penalties which in any of
their periods are afflictive
2. Less grave felonies- those which the law punishes with penalties which in their maximum period
are correctional
3. Light felonies- those infractions of law for the commission of which the penalty of arresto menor or
a fine not exceeding 200 pesos or both is provided

SUMMARY OF ARTICLE 1 TO 10:

Basic Principles

+ Punishable Conduct
1. Wrongful act different from that intended
-Error in personae
-Aberratio ictus

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-Praeter intentionem
2. Omissions punished by law
3. Proposals and Conspiracies punished by law
4. Attempted felony
5. Frustrated felony
6. Consummated felony

Modifying Circumstances

EXPANSION (Cf: Powerpoint)

Justifying Circumstances (Article 11): Exempting Circumstances (Article 12):

-no crime and no civil or criminal liability -crime committed but no criminal liability, only
civil liability
+ Absolutory Causes
Mitigating Circumstances (Article 13): Aggravating Circumstances (Article 14):
-crime committed and liability incurred, but -crime committed and liability incurred, and
mitigated aggravated

1. Ordinary Mitigating 1. Generic

2. Privilege Mitigating 2. Specific
3. Qualifying
4. Inherent
5. Special
+ Analogous Mitigating Circumstances
+ Multiple Offenders

1. Recidivism- Article 14(9)

A recidivist is one who, at the time of his trial for
one crime, shall have been previously convicted
by final judgment of another crime embraced in
the same title of this Code.
2. Reiteracion- Article 14(10)
Offender has been previously punished for an
offense to which the law attaches an equal or
greater penalty or for two or more crimes to
which it attaches a lighter penalty.
3. Quasi-recidivism- Article 62(5)
If within a period of ten years from the date of
offender’s release or last conviction of the crimes
of robo, hurto, estafa, or falsificacion, he is found
guilty of any of said crimes a third time or
oftener.
4. Habitual Delinquency- Article 160
Any person who shall commit a felony after
having been convicted by final judgment, before

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 beginning to serve such sentence, or while
serving the same.
+ Plurality of Crimes

1. Real or material plurality

2. Formal or ideal plurality
Complex Crime (Article 48)-
a. when a single act constitutes two or more
crimes (Compound Crime)
b. when an offense is a necessary means for
committing the other (Complex Crime Proper)

Special Complex Crime/Composite/Special

Indivisible Crime

Continued or continuous or continuing- Single

Criminal Impulse Rule

Transitory

Alternative (Article 15):

-either mitigate or aggravate the crime (Relationship; Intoxication; Degree of Instruction)

Criminal Participation (Article 16)

Principals (Article 17) Accomplices (Article 18) Accessories (Article 19-20)
1. Principal by direct -those persons who, not being -those who, having knowledge
participation included in article 17 of the commission of the crime
2. Principal by inducement -cooperate in the execution of -and without having
3. Principal by indispensable the offense participated therein, either as
cooperation -by previous or simultaneous principals or accomplices
acts -take part subsequent to its
commission in any of the
following manners:

1. By profiting themselves or
assisting the offender to profit
by the effects of the crime.
2. By concealing or destroying
the body of the crime, or the
effects or instruments thereof,
in order to prevent its
discovery.
3. By harboring, concealing, or
assisting in the escape of the
principal of the crime, provided
the accessory acts with abuse of
his public functions or

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 whenever the author of the
crime is guilty of treason,
parricide, murder, or an
attempt to take the life of the
Chief Executive, or is known to
be habitually guilty of some
other crime.
+ Article 16: accessories in light
felonies not criminally liable
+ Article 20: Penalties
prescribed for accessories shall
not be imposed upon those who
are such with respect to their
spouses, ascendants,
descendants, legitimate,
natural, and adopted brothers
and sisters, or relatives by
affinity within the same degrees
(except Article 20, par. 1)
+ Anti-fencing law
Conspiracy/participation in
criminal resolution
Community of design
Knowledge

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